Mike Rizzo’s statement will only anger Nationals fans

Nationals GM Mike Rizzo tried to placate fans with an explanation of the Juan Soto trade, but it likely only angered them more.

Mike Rizzo has a lot to explain in Washington right now.

He just traded superstar Juan Soto for him a package of prospects that may or may not pan out.

and nationals Fans aren’t exactly thrilled about it.

The manager appeared on The Sports Junkies Show on Audacy’s 106.7 The Fan in Washington, DC on Wednesday he shared his side on how it all went.

Swap for Juan Soto: Mike Rizzo’s statement will only anger Nationals fans

It all boils down to blaming Soto and his agent Scott Boras for how things turned out.

“The agent has a history of bringing most or all of their superstar players to free agency. Only the tenor and tone of the conversations led us to believe [he wouldn’t sign]’ Rizzo said. “We made three offers to Juan in the last year and none of them were turned down and there wasn’t much discussion other than ‘No, we won’t take that offer.’ It’s what I kind of read into it.”

The question fans might ask Rizzo is exactly what those three deals entailed. They don’t count as a genuine attempt to hold Soto if they were lowball, as many suspect.

Most frustratingly, Rizzo and the Nationals seem to have given up on a talent like Soto simply because they assumed others would follow.

“You have to remember that Anthony and Trea and Max and Harper, all these guys, it was [C.J.] Abrams and the [Robert] Hassells and the [James] Woods of the world before they became superstars. I would say that to our fans,” Rizzo said. “We put ourselves in a position to be successful in the long term.”

The problem is that Soto should be the one to usher the team into their new era. Letting him go at the age of just 23 means a complete reboot with a number of prospects not much younger than Soto himself.